The National Weather Service has issued a flood watch that will be in effect from 6:45 a.m. today until 10 a.m. Friday.
The weather service expects rivers across northeast Colorado will experience an elevated flow throughout the next several days. A flood warning and flood watch have also been issued near the Poudre and the South Platte rivers, which are expected to last through Friday.
With more rain in the forecast, water is expected to be on the rise through Thursday. The National Weather Service advises that all interested parties take the necessary precautions.
By 4 p.m. Tuesday, 1.14 inches of rain had fallen, according to data gathered at a weather monitoring station at the University of Northern Colorado. So far this month, more than 5 inches of rain have fallen in Greeley. Normal for this far in May is about 1 1/2 inches.
While water levels in the rivers declined late last week, however, heavy rains early this week and forecasts of future rains caused the weather service to predict an increase in the South Platte from just under 10 feet to 11.7 feet by Thursday. Flood stage is 10 feet. The water in the Poudre also was on the decline last week, with waters just above 7 feet earlier this week, but water is expected to rise to 8.5 feet by this afternoon. The flood stage for the Poudre is 8 feet. With the chance of showers decreasing throughout the week, river levels are again expected to decline below the flood stages, for both the South Platte and the Poudre river by Friday and into the weekend.
Forecasts for today and Thursday show a 20 percent chance of rain, with some expected thunderstorms in the afternoon. Temperatures will be in the lower 40s today and in the lower 60s on Thursday. By Friday, there will be a 60 percent chance of rain. By Friday, there will be a 60 percent chance of rain. A chance of showers and thunderstorms is predicted throughout the weekend.
